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May 7, 2004

"The greatest use of life is to spend it for something that will outlast it." --William James

Capitalism to Clean the Sky

Investing in the future of the Earth may seem like a hokey slogan for an environmental organization, but for the 49 students in Lynne Lewis' environmental economics class at Bates College, it's a requirement. Last month, students at the Lewiston, Maine, college bid on -- and won -- the rights to pollute the environment with nine tons of sulfur dioxide at an auction sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency. They then proceeded to retire those rights, effectively keeping that sulfur dioxide from falling on Maine, or anywhere else, in the form of acid rain. It's a tactic to save the environment, available for the last 10 years.